Machine for resurfacing bowling-alley beds.



R. T. JOHNSTON.

MACHINE FOR RESURFACING BOWLING ALLEY BEDS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.6,1914.

1,1 29,401. Patented Feb. 23, 1915.

4 SHEETSSHEET 1.

R.'T. JOHNSTON.

MACHINE FOR RESURFACING BOWLING ALLEY BEDS.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 6. 1914.

1,1 29,401 Patented Feb. 23, 1915,

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Masses.-

R. T. JOHNSTON.

MACHINE FOR RESURFACING BOWLING ALLEY'BEDS.

4 APPLICATION FILED AUG. 6, 1914.

Patented Feb. 23, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3 R. T. JOHNSTON. MACHINE FOB BESURPAOING BOWLING ALLEY BEDS. APPLIOATIDH TILED AUG. 8. 1914. 1,129,401. Patented Feb. 23, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4 1M! NORRIS PITII S 00-, PHOTO-LIME. WASHINGTON. D. G

,15 the center or diagonally across the bed rolls UNITED STATES. PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT T. JOHNS'IoN, or- CHICAGO, rumors, ASSIGNQB' TO run BRUNSWIcKTB ALKE- GOLLENDER comm, or omcneo. ILLINOIS, A ,coRroRA'rIoNor DELAWARE.

MACHINE FOB RESURFACING BOWLING ALLEY BEDS.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ROBERT T. JOHNSTON, a citizen of the United'Stat'es, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois,'have invented certain new and use? 'ful Improvements in Machines forResurfacing Bowling-Alley Beds, of which the following is a specification.

; This invention has relation to bowling aileys and more particularly-to means for maintaining the alley bed in perfect condition.

Bowling alley be'ds should be kept perfectly horizontal and level to obtain the best results but constant rolling of the ball down or wears a groove or grooves in the surface of the bed, and sometimes the surfacebecomes irregular or wavy because ofswelling or shrinkage of the wood or settling of the walls or foundation. It is necessary at times to remove the gutters to level up *the bed from underneath, but the usual practice-1s to cut down the high spots with hand planes and. smooth the surface with sandpaper. This is slow and tedious and expensive work,

and uncertain at best because of the difliculty of leveling a large area by hand with the tools available.

In my companion application Serial No. 855,365, filed August 6, .1914, I have disclosed a method of leveling bowling alley beds which contemplates first obtaining a guide level by a such a machine as is disclosed in my application Serial No. 855,366, filed August 6, 1914, and then cutting down the surface to such predetermined level by the machine whichforms the subject of this application.

The object of this invention is to provide amachine which will operate to cut down the surface of a bowling alley bed to a premaybe used repeatedly in both directions.

determined level.

' A further object is-to provide for automatically reversing the machine to cut-back and forth across the bed so thatthe sandpaper employed for the cutting operation And a further object is to provide for cutting the surface of the bed upward at'its edgeinstead of flatwise down upon the sur-. face so that the sandpaper will not fill up with dust of the surfacing material.

The invention has other objects in view which will appear more fully hereafter in Specification of Letters; Iatent.

a lication med au ust c, 19 4. ,seri luassaaev.

Patented Feb. 23, 1915.

the detail description thereof as embodied in the;machine illustrated in the accompanying drawings in,which Figure '1 is a plan view of the machine on a portion of a bowling alley; Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the machine with the bed in section; Fig. 3 is an end view of the machineshowing the bed in section; Fig. 4 is a-detail-sectional view showing the reversing mechanism; Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the machine; Fig. 6 is a detailsectional view showing a guide and supporting shoe.

Referring to the drawings, 7 is the frame of the machine-which is supported on adjustableelements 8 arranged to travel on the alley bed 9, preferably in'level guide grooves 10 therein according to the inventions of my companion applications aforesaid.

A roll of sandpaper 11 is mounted in brackets 12 on the frame and rests upon rolls 13, 14 suitably journaled in the frame. Another roll 15 is mounted in brackets 16 on the machine to take "up the sandpaper from roll'll and this roll 15 also rests upon rolls 17,18. The sandpaper is caused to travel back and forth from one roll to the other, the supply and take-up rolls being revolved by the rolls 13, 14, 7, 18, and'the sandpaper running from one to the other roll 11, 15 over rolls 13, 17 ,which thus form end guides for the sandpaper. The rolls 13, 17 are driven by sprocket chains 19 20 operating on sprockets 19, 20 on the main shaft 21 which paper extends across the machine beneath the frame and a pressure roller 25 is arranged to travel back and forth across the bed and press the sandpaper to its work on the surface of the bed. This roller is mounted in shoes 26 (Fig. which travel on guides 27 on the frame and are fastened-to sprocket chains 28 mounted to travel on sprockets 29 at each end of the frame.

The shaft 30- of roll 17 has worm and gear connections 31 with the shafts 32 of sprockets 29 to drive the chains 28 but the pressure roller is caused to travelat lower rate of speed than that ofxthe paper. Prefe'rably the roller will travel across the bed once while the paper is being woundfrom one roll to the other and then as the operation is automatically reversed the roll travels back again and the paper is rewound on'its frame 41 carries a clutch member 42 which engages clutch member 43 on the differential casing 44 inclosing differential gear 45 on main shaft 21 The .frame' 41 is engaged with a groove 45.. in the frame of motor 22.

and has "a fork 46 to engage the grooved collar 47 of a clutch member 48on shaft 21,

' this clutch member being arranged to co-act with clutch member 49 on the casing 44. .An arm 50 on the frame 44 is pivotally connected' with a lever 51 which is pivotally mounted at 52 and has its free end arranged to engage the cam 40.

Referring to Fig. 4, the reversing mechanism is in neutral-position. The cam 40 causes the frame 41 to move back and forth throwing first one clutch in and the other 7 out and then the one out and [the other in.

When the clutch members 42, 43 are engaged the shaft 21 will be driven in one direction since the frame 41 will hold the diiferential casing rigid, but when clutch members 48, 49 are engaged the casing is released and may turn to rotate the shaft 21 in the opposite-direction- Q a In practice, my machine is arranged on the alley bed withthe pressure roller above one gutter 53 to causethe sandpaper to engage the side edge 'of the alley with an up.- percut and this action continues entirely across the bed, transversely of the'grain of the wood, and is repeated in reverse direction. The machine is moved lengthwise of the alley as the transverse-cuttingcontinues until the entire bed has been covered. I

prefer 'to go over the bed first with coarse. sandpaper to give it a rough cut and then with finer sandpaper to give it a smooth-cut.

It is desirable to undercut the surface because in this way I avoid fillingup the sandpaper with the dust of the shellac and finish coatings and wood removed by the sand-- paper from thesurface of the alley and this I accomplishby setting the shoes 8 accordingly and running ;thepressure roller be-' yond theside edgesof the bed and above'the gutters sufficiently. Then ,asQ-Lit-f travels )acmssithe Bed I s sure roller Willdper, ate to hold the Sandpaper to its work and a revolving roller, astatlonary rolle 0 one roll tothe other, and means for press combination of a frame, a supply roll and;

the latter will throw the dust forward in the direction of its travel, practically cleaning itself as it travels. On each side of the roller the sandpaper extends upward at {an f angle to the plane of the work. By-reverS- ing the travel of the sandpaper it may be, used repeatedl before it becomes toodull. In' the particu ar embodiment of the inven- .76 tion illustrated in the drawings the roller 25 is journaled to revolve :in its travel but it is not necessary that the roller should'jrevolvf and it may be fixed in its bearingstoj-act asa shoe, or any other pressure device suitabl for the purpose may be employed, and whenever'the word roller is used in't connection it will be understood to, cover and include any suitablepressure device, sucha shoe.

I claim":

1.- In a machine of theclaes describe ,t combinationiof a frame, a pairjof mounted-on the frame,"-a. supply of paper disposed uo'on said'rolls,"-means fo {continuously transferring the paper from ing the paper into contact with the-work, along a line movable with respect thereto. 2. In a machine of the class described, the combination of a frame, a pair of rolls, mounted on the frame, .a supply of sand" paper disposed on said rolls, means for coii tinuously transferring the paperfrom-on roll to the other, and a pressure rollerfo" holding the paper in contact with the work I along a line movable with respect thereto.

' 3. In a machine of the class described, the

atake-up roll mounted onthe frame, a sup-f ply of,sandpaper on the supply roll and running to the take-up roll, means for continuously moving the paper between said rolls and a pressure roller located below to its work, the sandpaper on each side of the pressure roller extending upward at an angle to the'plane of the work.

4. In a machine of theclass described, the combination-0f a frame, a supplyroll'an'd' a take-up 'roll mounted on the frame, a supply of sandpaper on the supply roll and run ning. to the take-up roll, a bodily movable pressure roller operating upon the sandpaper between the rolls to hold it to its work, and means for causing the sandpaper and the roller to travel always in the same dire'ction.- v

5. In a machine of theclass described, the

combination of a frame; a supply roll and a take-up roll mounted on the frame, a supply of sandpaper on the supply'roll and run- .ning to the take-up roll, a pressure roller operating upon the sandpaper between the rolls to hold it to its work, and means causrate of .speed from one end of the machine to the other.

6. In a machine of the character described, thecombination of a frame, a pair of rolls on the frame alternately constituting a supply roll and a take-up roll, a supply of sandpaper running from the supply roll to the take-up roll, a pressure roller operating on the sandpaper between said rolls to hold it to its work, means for causing the sandpaper and roller to travel together but at different rates of speed, and means for automatically reversing the direction of travel of the sandpaper and roller.

7. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a frame, elements adjustably secured on the frame for supporting the same, a pair of rolls on the frame alternately constituting a supply roll and a take-up roll,a supply of sandpaper running from the supply roll to the take-up 'roll, a pressure roller operating on the sandpaper between and below said rolls to hold it to its work, and means for causing the sandpaper and the roller to travel back and forth together but at different rates of speed.

8. In a machine of the character described, the combinationof a frame, a pair of rolls alternately constituting a supply and a take-up roll, a pair of driven rolls supporting and revolving said supply and take-up rolls, a supply of sandpaper on the supply roll running over the outer of each of said pairs of rolls to the take-up roll, and a pressure roller operating on the sandpaper below said pairs of rolls to hold the sandpaper to its work on a line through the center of said roller.

9. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a frame, a pair of rolls alternately constituting a supply and a take-up roll, a supply of sandpaper running from the supply to the take-up roll,

a pressure roller operating on the sandpaper to hold it to its work, guides on the frame,- shoes supporting the roller and arranged to travel on said guides, and means for causingthe roller and sandpaper to travel to gether but at different rates of speed.

ROBERT T. JOHNSTON.

' Witnesses:

VVM. O. BELT,

M. A. KIDDIE. 

